​This year leading up to our annual Best of Houston issue, we're counting down our 100 favorite dishes in Houston. This list comprises our favorite dishes from the last year, dishes that are essential to Houston's cultural landscape and/or dishes that any visitor (or resident) should try at least once.

Although I will never turn down a piece of chicken-fried steak with eggs for breakfast, it's also nice to tuck into something a little bit more rarefied on those weekend mornings when you feel like sipping fancy cocktails and wearing a new dress at brunch (men, this may or may not apply to you as well).

Canopy addresses this niche well, serving an elegant yet still casual Southern-style brunch that mirrors its airy dining room and laid-back attitude: In this way, it straddles its location between funky Montrose and the staid Museum District quite well. Its buttermilk-fried pork loin is the epitome of this brunch service.

The pork loin is tender, seemingly brined, and cuts with a fork as the crispy exterior shatters softly under your fork. On top (not on the side, as some purists would prefer) is a jalapeño-sausage pan gravy that is at first glance too clean-looking, too white, yet yields a smoky, complex flavor that snaps with bites of fresh jalapeño. Roasted potatoes on the side mimic the pork loin's texture progression: crisp on the outside, soft and buttery within.

But no breakfast or brunch plate is complete without eggs, so Canopy provides two overeasy eggs cozied right up to the pork. Breaking it open and use the golden yolks as additional "gravy" for the potatoes if the jalapeño gravy gets too hot for you.